First Dates
by elieg1ory
Summary: When Lucy is stood up on her very first date, a mysterious stranger steps in and saves the night.
1. Chapter 1: Hello Stand-In?

**First Dates**

~x~

 **Author's Note** : Taking some time while waiting for my little sister to finish up her placement test to write some NaLu fluff. I hope you all like it!

~x~

 _Summary: When Lucy is stood up on her very first date, a mysterious stranger steps in and saves the night._

 **Chapter One: Hello, Stand-In?**

For what felt like the hundredth time, Lucy reached behind herself and yanked the dress zipper down, sliding the silky material off and onto the floor with the rest of the rejects. She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose for a second while she thought. "What are you even supposed to wear on a first date?" she asked herself for what was neither the first nor the last time. "Should I go more casual, or would a little fancier?"

The blonde groaned, staring at the collection of dresses and outfits that was circling her. "Lu-chan, are you still getting dressed?" her roommate, Levy, called from the other room. Lucy didn't answer, instead walking over to her closet, again, and going through everything on the hangers, quietly finding reasons to reject each of them.

"Too casual, too formal, too out of style, too… _ugh_ what was I even thinking when I bought this?"

The sound of light footsteps filled her room as Levy walked to the doorway, watching as her friend struggled. "Lu-chan," she said kindly. "Just wearing something that you like wearing. It's just a first date, if he's really interested, then it won't matter."

"Easy for you to say," Lucy muttered, sighing again. "You and Gajeel had long since made a first impression when he finally asked you on a date." Gajeel was, of course, Levy's long-time friend turned boyfriend just a few months ago. The other girl giggled a little bit, the very mention of her pierced boyfriend making her swoon.

Lucy wanted something like that, and that was why she finally gave in and agreed to go on a date with Bora, a man she had just met a week previously. That was how normal people went on dates, right? You didn't _have_ to be friends for the better part of a year before making it official, _right_?

"I think I'll just wear the red one," the blonde finally conceded, plucking it off the floor and dusting it off. It was a floor length gown made of a shimmery material that hugged her body nicely, a long slit going down the right side and low-cut just enough that she could both look good and feel safe that she wasn't revealing _too_ much. Stepping into it, Levy quickly came over to help pull it up, waiting until Lucy was happy with where it was laying before zipping it up. "What do you think?"

Levy rolled her eyes. "You look just as beautiful as ever, Lu-chan," she assured her. "When are you meeting him?"

"About an hour," Lucy said, checking the time on her cell phone. "Just enough time for a make-up touch-up and to fix my hair." The blue-haired girl nodded, reminding her that she was just in the other room if she needed help before retreating back into their living room. Humming to herself now, Lucy sat down at her vanity and began to subtly apply her make-up. She didn't want to make it look too obvious, just enough to highlight her naturally good looks and to make her eyes stand out just a little bit.

Deciding against any elaborate hairstyle, Lucy settled straightening her hair and then pulling up part of the right side of her hair into a high side-ponytail. Just like Levy had said; something that she liked wearing. With one more lasting look in the mirror, Lucy finally rose to her feet and grabbed a small ribbon, tying it in a nice bow around her neck. "There," she said, satisfied with her first-date appearance. Levy was reading on the couch when she walked out, but looked up when she heard Lucy's heels clinking on the wood floors.

"Ah, Lu-chan," she said, putting the book down and sitting up. "You're so beautiful!"

Lucy smiled a little, grabbing a simple black clutch purse from the counter. "Thanks, Levy-chan," she said appreciatively. "I'll let you know how it goes," she promised once before slipping outside, Levy's 'good luck!' ringing in her ears as the door clicked shut.

The restaurant that Bora was taking her to wasn't too far from her apartment, not worth getting a cab over. Waving to their landlady once as she passed, the blonde took a deep breath of the night air and made her way down the street. Not only was this her first date with Bora, it was actually her first date ever. For much of her life, she had focused on only her studies and her writing, politely turning down any potential suitors that had come along the way. But now she had graduated, was about halfway through college, and was the only one of her friends that hadn't so much as dated a guy. She sighed at the thought; even shy little Levy had landed a boyfriend before her! Which wouldn't be so bad in of itself, and she did like Gajeel well enough, but if he wasn't over at their house playing video games he had brought over, Levy was hanging out with him somewhere else. It had started to get a little lonely, perpetually being the third or fifth wheel with her friends.

Nearing the restaurant, Lucy cleared her throat once, smoothing down the front of her dress before walking in. "Hello madam," the host said, a slight accent on his words. "Did you have a reservation?"

"Um, yes, I believe so," she said, thankful she went for a more formal look. "It should be under Bora? I'm not sure if he's here yet." The host nodded, quickly leafing through his book for a second while she looked around. No sign of him.

"We have your reservation, yes, but he has not arrived. Would you like to take your table now while you wait?"

Lucy nodded, feeling a pit in her stomach. He had made it such a point to tell her 6 o'clock sharp, and now he was late? The host nodded, pulling two menus from a side pocket and gesturing for her to follow him to a small two-person table. "I'll have the waiter bring out some water for you while you wait," he said, smiling as she thanked him.

Fifteen minutes passed before she finally decided to try calling him. He had given her his number after they agreed on the time and place, but she hadn't called or even texted him yet, not sure of what she was supposed to say to a guy she had only just met. Digging through the clutch, Lucy realized with a bit of embarrassment that she hadn't remembered to put her phone in before leaving. "Great," she muttered to herself, snapping it closed and placing it roughly on the table.

Another ten minutes passed without any interruptions, until she heard the sounds of a large group entering. "Ah, hello Miss Erza," she heard the host say. "How many tonight?" Lucy didn't catch Miss Erza's response, but the host quickly led them to a table that was about half the room's length away from the still solo Lucy. Curious, she let her eyes scan over the group; a party of six it seemed. For a second, Lucy found herself staring at them; was it normal for so many people to have such exotic hair colors like that? A beautiful shade of red, a dark blue, _rose_ pink, and even white. Not wanting to be caught staring, she quickly turned back to her menu, pretending to read through it once more.

"Miss?" someone said, appearing beside her. "Are you still waiting?"

Her cheeks flushed a little. "Yes," she said, thankful that her voice didn't sound as shaky as she felt. "I'm sure he just got the time wrong." The waiter nodded, promising to bring another water to replace the one she had sucked down.

Another twenty minutes passed before the waiter came by again, glancing at the empty seat opposite of her. "Miss," he started to say, but Lucy quietly cut him off, promising that her date would show up. He nodded again, clearing his throat before leaving. The party of six was quite loud, though she couldn't make out much of their conversation, but Lucy was certain that the wait staff had noticed her situation. Lucy held her head high, however, certain that he would show up. There was no way her first date was going to be a bust like this.

By the time 8 o'clock rolled around, Lucy had all but lost her appetite. Her cheeks seemed to be in a permanent blush with shame and embarrassment. The waiter had come back four more times, and each time she told him the same thing, her resolve faltering more and more the longer she waited. When he appeared a fifth time, she finally sighed, forced to accept the truth. "Miss, the chef in the back has offered you a complimentary meal for your troubles, if you'd be interested," he said as she finally told him she was done waiting.

"Ah, thank you, but –"

"Yo! Sorry I'm so late!"

Lucy looked up, already on her feet and ready to slip out of her heels and run to her room, amazed to see a young man rushing towards her. He was wearing a scaly white scarf, a black, long-sleeved, buttoned vest and comfortable looking white pants, a large grin on his face as he approached. "It was the craziest thing ever, you're never going to believe what happened on my way here!" He got close to her, close enough that she could smell her smoky breath. "Mind a step-in?"

"A-ah, it seems that you were right to wait, Ma'am," the waiter said with a relieved smile. Lucy looked between the two, still utterly confused on what had happened. The waiter promised them both another water before disappearing, leaving Lucy and the stranger alone.

"I'm sorry, who are you?" Lucy asked, eyes narrowing. Had Bora sent one of his friends in his place? The man smiled, taking the seat that she had been staring at the last two hours.

"I'm Natsu," he said casually, leaning back in his chair. "I saw you waiting here forever and I thought I'd come and keep you company since your date's an ass." Lucy blinked, surprised at the kindness – and yet also bluntness – of this stranger. "What's your name?"

"Lucy," she said, still trying to process everything. There was something about his rosy pink hair that looked a little familiar, and her brown eyes stared at it while she tried to figure it out. _Oh! He was part of that large group_ , she realized, glancing over. They had left a little bit ago, and she hadn't paid them much heed. "Weren't you over there with some friends?"

Natsu shrugged, flashing her another grin. His canines were sharper than usual, and paired with the scarf's scaly pattern, he almost reminded her of a dragon. Almost. "Yup! But I can always have more to eat," he said casually, sitting up straighter as the waiter reappeared, asking if they were ready to order. "I am, are you?"

The blonde blinked a second before nodding, flipping open the menu again. She had been ready two hours ago. She ordered a chicken salad and a glass of iced tea, something simple for her upset stomach.

Her stand-in date, however, began to rattle off his order quicker than she thought possible. "I want a steak, the largest you have, extra, extra, _extra_ well done. Like, basically burnt. With the hottest sauce you have, all over. You know what, just bring me a bottle, you guys never put enough on. And replace the salad with a large side of fries, extra, _extra_ seasoned and crispy."

While Lucy stared in amazement at the specifics of his order, the waiter was scribbling it down without a second thought. "Absolutely, I will have that right out for you," he said, offering Lucy another sympathetic smile. The blonde smiled back, happy that her waiter had been so kind. He was gone in a flash, leaving Natsu and Lucy alone once more.

Suddenly, she found herself more nervous than she had been on the walk over. She didn't much about Bora, but she had known enough to prepare some sort of conversation. With Natsu, however, she knew nothing about him. "Is that natural?" she blurted out, cheeks flushing a color similar to his hair. Natsu looked up, dark eyes confused for a second before he smirked.

"Yup," he said again. "Do you always ask questions like that to people you just met?"

Again, Lucy flushed. "No," she said, a little snippy. "Do you normally crash random girls dates?"

Expecting a sour response, Natsu laughed instead. "I don't normally go on dates, Luigi," he said. Lucy felt her eye twitch. Luigi?

"My name is Lucy."

"Whatever."

The blonde sighed, suddenly wishing she had left an hour ago. "You're not a very good date, you know," she pointed out, crossing her arms against her chest.

Natsu looked up at her and smirked, not at all offended. "Better than the one you were supposed to have," he said matter-of-factly. Again, Lucy's cheeks flushed. For a second, Natsu shifted in his chair, and Lucy swore she saw a shy look cross his slanted eyes. "I've never been on a date before, even a stand-in."

"Neither have I."

He looked up, and Lucy felt her expression soften. Her stand-in's eyes widened as understanding crept over him. "You've never been on a date before, and your date ditched you?" he asked. Lucy nodded, looking down at her hands. "What a jerk."

"I'm sure he called me," Lucy said, not quite wanting to believe that Bora could have really just blown her off. "But I left my phone in my room, I think."

At that, Natsu laughed. For a second, Lucy felt a flash of anger that he was laughing at her mistake, but as he kept chuckling, she found herself begin laughing as well. "That was pretty dumb, wasn't it?" she asked. At her words, the two of them started laughing a little harder, until both of them had subsided into the breathy laughs of someone who had been laughing for too long. When they had finally calmed down, Lucy took a sip of her tea, smiling at the sweetness. "So then, Natsu," she said, clearing her throat. "Tell me about yourself."

"What do you want to know?"

Lucy shrugged. "I don't know," she said, rolling her eyes at him. "What do people normally talk about on a date?"

This time, Natsu rolled his eyes at her. "How would I know?" he retorted, smirking at Lucy's pink cheeks. "Well," he said, leaning back again. Lucy noticed with some amusement that he was constantly moving around, as if sitting still was too much effort. "My name's Natsu, I go to Magnolia University, I work in a fighting dojo that my adopted father owns, and I want to be the greatest fighter in the world one day."

"Like Chuck Norris?"

Lucy watched in smug satisfaction as his eyes twitched. "No," he said vehemently. Lucy giggled a little, interrupting whatever spiel he was about to enter, and he laughed a little. Their eyes met, and Lucy's message was clear; payback for calling me Luigi. "Alright, your turn."

The blonde cleared her throat. "Okay, um, my name's Lucy, I'm also attending Magnolia University, I work in Makarov Library, and I want to write a novel one day," she said, mimicking the way he had described himself. Natsu's eyes seemed to light up a little, and he even sat up straight.

"You go there, too?" he asked, his childish tone making her grin. "That's so cool! I wonder why I've never seen you around."

Lucy shrugged. "It's a big campus," she pointed out. "What are you majoring in?"

The two of them kept up a steady stream of conversation as they waited for their food, and even after it arrived, they talked in between mouthfuls. Conversation with Natsu was easy; Lucy never found herself struggling for words or any awkward pauses between them. _This must be what it feels like to 'click' with someone_ , she guessed. Her pink-haired stand-in was fun to talk to, energetic and lively, his whole face lighting up as he talked about his dad, about the others that worked in the dojo with him – former students and friends he had known for years.

"Sounds like a fun place," she said, wiping away a few stray tears as he finished telling her a story about when his father's friend, Gildarts, had accidentally hit him so hard he went flying through the building and landed on, of all things, the sandbox they had just built. "What's it called?"

Natsu grinned. "Fairy Tail," he explained, a sort of reverence in his voice. "It used to be a bar that this girl, Mavis, owned, but over the years it changed a lot and when the last old man retired and my dad took over, he officially changed it to a dojo so that we would stop getting in trouble for fighting all the time."

"I've seen that place," Lucy said thoughtfully. "It's just a little bit away from the university, isn't it?" Natsu nodded, eyes widening a little. "Yeah! I pass there every day on my way to class!"

"That's so cool! How come you've never stopped in?" he asked curiously, blinking at her. Lucy blushed a little under his gaze, stammering out something about how she was a girl. "So? My friends Erza and Mira are girls, and they used to kick my ass all the time. Of course, now I can totally beat them!"

Lucy laughed again, setting her fork down next to her empty salad bowl. Natsu had scarfed down his steak in a matter of minutes, but didn't seem to care that Lucy was considerably slower than he was. Her stomach dropped again as she realized that the end of the meal meant the end of the pseudo-date, her suspicions confirmed as the waiter dropped the check off next to Natsu. He picked it up before Lucy could grab it, giving her a weird look. "I can pay," the blonde insisted. "You weren't exactly planning on having to pay for three meals today or anything."

"Yeah, but isn't the guy supposed to pay for the date?" he asked, eyebrows raised. "That's what Igneel always told me."

"Right, but –"

"But nothing."

His tone left no room for argument, so Lucy had no choice to slump back and watch as he pulled cash out of his wallet, placing it on top of the receipt and leaving it slightly under his plate for the waiter. Neither said a word as they stood up, Lucy smoothing her dress and gathering her clutch and making sure she had everything before following Natsu to the door. "Have a good evening," the host said, all smiles and nods. Lucy nodded and waved as they passed, stepping out into the cool evening air.

"Where did you park?" Natsu asked, looking around. Lucy laughed, explaining that she lived down the street and had walked. "Oh, okay." With just that, he began to walk, hands clasped behind his head. Lucy stared at him, wondering if that was how he said goodbye when he suddenly looked over his shoulder. "Aren't you coming, weirdo?"

Realizing he intended to walk her home, Lucy blushed again, grateful for the darkness to hide it as she caught up. They walked in companionable silence for most of it, the only sounds being the quiet nighttime around them. Lucy found herself wishing that she lived miles away, just so that she didn't have to say goodbye quite yet. Natsu had given no indication that he planned to see her again, so the closer they got to her apartment building, the more it looked like this would be their only meeting.

"Here," she said, gesturing to the building. With a slight sigh, she stepped onto the first step, looking back at him. "Thank you," Lucy told him, smiling. "You made my bad night wonderful." Natsu grinned, and the blonde could almost swear that he was blushing a little. "I guess I'll see you around," Lucy tried again, hoping she could bate him into asking her out for real or something. He only nodded, looking off into the distance. "Well, good night."

"This weekend," he started to say, looking up at her. "There's a big tournament starting in my dojo." Lucy blinked, already halfway up the stairs. This time, there was no mistaking the pinkness of his cheeks, though that could very well have been due to the cold. "Would you like to come watch?"

Lucy gasped a little, a smile growing across her cheeks. "I'd love to," she said, blushing. Natsu grinned up at her, telling her the time and when to arrive to get the best seats. "Thank you again, Natsu," she said, her hand on the door. Natsu grinned up at her for a second before turning away.

"See you Saturday, Luigi!" he called. Lucy heard him snicker into his scarf just before she yelled at him to stop calling her that, watching as he broke into a run. For just a second, he turned around, waving his arm wildly before steadying himself and disappearing into the night. Lucy stood on the stood of her building, feeling her heart pound against her chest. He hadn't said it was a date, but Lucy didn't care if it was or not.

"See you Saturday, Natsu," she whispered before finally turning and entering the warmth of her building, humming once more as she ascended the steps, feeling like she was floating on air.

~x~

 **Author's Note** : I've never really written for Fairy Tail before, but I absolutely adore it and everything about it, so I hope I did a good job writing the characters! I'm pretty sure this is just going to be a one-shot, but if I can think of a nice way to continue, I'll definitely consider making it a multi-chapter or something. Either way, I hope you all enjoyed it!


	2. Chapter 2: Take a Hike, Bora

**First Dates**

~x~

Author's Note: Sooooo…yeah. Maybe not a one-shot after all haha.

~x~

 **Chapter Two: Take a Hike, Bora**

Natsu slowed to a walk after he had turned the corner away from Lucy's apartment, pressing his nose to the scarf around his neck. Had he really asked her to come to the tournament? His cheeks felt hot, but he decided it was the chilly mid-September weather, nothing more. He glanced behind him as if he could still see her apartment before shaking his head and shoving his hands in his pockets.

No one at Fairy Tail was going to believe this.

His phone vibrated against his hip, and he finally pulled it out. It had been going off nonstop all night, but Igneel had told him it was rude to answer your phone when you were on a date – even though that could hardly be considered a real date. When he pressed the button to light up the screen again, he groaned. Sixty-seven messages, twenty something calls, and about a dozen voice messages. He opened the texts first, deciding not to bother checking the rest.

It seemed like Mira had seen him sneaking back in to join Lucy and had informed _everyone_ at the guild – their nickname for the dojo – that he was on a date, for the entire guild had been texting him asking questions. He lazily scrolled through them, not caring about most of them.

Before he could put it away, it vibrated once more and lit up with a picture of someone calling. He swiped his thumb across and pressed it to his ear, not even getting the chance to answer before the person starting excitedly talking.

"Natsu! Guys, he answered! Natsu, what have you been doing? We've been trying to get through to you all night!"

He sighed, placing his free hand behind his head. "I was still hungry, so I went back for more food," he said, shrugging as if she could hear it. "Why'd you guys have blow up my phone so much, anyways?" The girl sighed, muttering something to someone in the background. "Lisanna?" he asked, trying to get her attention back. "I'll be at the guild in a little bit, so stop texting and calling me!"

He could hear her rolling her eyes at him. "Alright, but be prepared for a lot of questions," she warned. Natsu grimaced. The noise in the background disappeared and he guessed she had walked outside. "Mira said she saw you sitting with that cute blonde girl when you went back in."

"Yeah," he said truthfully. Lisanna was his best friend, there was no sense in lying to her about it. "She looked really upset."

Lisanna giggled. "That was really sweet of you," she told him. "I have to tell Mira about this!"

"Lisanna, wait!" It was too late, she had already disconnected. Natsu cursed. The Strauss girls and their gossip! Sighing, he stopped walking, standing across the street from the bar turned dojo. The lights were on, and he could hear a few of the louder people talking, but he didn't want to go inside and deal with the wave of teasing his friends would give him. Lisanna had probably told Mira all about it, and the two of them were most likely gushing in that girly way and telling everyone else about it. He sighed once before crossing the street and pushing open the doors to the bar portion of it.

Immediately, four people were around him asking him about his 'date' and who she was. He grimaced as he tried to push past them. "Little Natsu, all grown up!" one of the older men said with a laugh, ignoring the glare he sent them. Lisanna's brother Elfman stood off to the side, congratulating him on his manliness and crying about something or other.

"I'LL SHOW YOU WHO'S MANLY!" Natsu roared, flinging himself towards the larger man. Elfman's eyes widened as Natsu's fist suddenly connected with his stomach, but recovered quickly to fight back.

Natsu grinned. _This_ was what he wanted to be doing, not answering a bunch of dumb questions.

The next few days passed by rather slow. Class had started just a few weeks back, so most of his classes were still hitting their stride. Not that he wanted to be at school or anything, but Igneel was insistent that he get a good education. So he sucked it up and went to his classes and turned in the papers and everything else that was expected of him.

Today, however, after two years of attending the university, he decided to take a trip to the library. It had dawned on him that he never asked Lucy for her number or anything, something that Lisanna had chastised him about that evening. He walked in and immediately wished he hadn't. The first floor was _huge_. Bookshelves were situated like a maze after the front desk, and he couldn't even see the end of most of them. How was he supposed to find Lucy in a mess like this?

"Natsu?"

He turned, ignoring the way his heart sped up a little at the sound of his name. "Yo!" he called when he spotted her, grinning. She was wearing considerably more casual clothes than she had been at the restaurant, though her hair was still tied up. Her cheeks were pink when he approached her, looking up at him with wide eyes. "What's up?"

Lucy blinked. "Not much. Just…working," she said, gesturing to the cart full of books. "I wasn't really expecting to see you again until Saturday." Natsu felt his stomach do a strange loop. Were you not supposed to see a girl before the day of the date? "N-not that I'm upset to see you or anything!" Lucy suddenly said, her cheeks darkening a little. "I'm just surprised."

"Yeah, well, my friend said I should have given you my number or something, so I figured I should find you and give it to you," he said with a shrug, glancing at her for a second before looking away. Why was it so hard to look at her? "So, uh, here." He held out a piece of paper with the ten numbers on it and his name messily scrawled underneath it. Lucy took it with an almost amused look in her eyes, reading over the paper. "What?"

She let out a small laugh, shaking her head. "Nothing. It's just…your handwriting. It's _awful_." Natsu felt his eye twitch a little as she started to laugh a little more. Cheeks flushed, he reached out and snatched the paper back out of her hands, crossing his arms. "Hey!"

"You can't have it if you're just going to make fun of me," he told her, turning away with his nose in the air. He started to turn away when he felt her hand grab his elbow.

"I promise I won't," she said, eyes wide. She was still smiling, thankfully, so Natsu rolled his eyes and handed it back to her. "Thank you." Natsu muttered a 'whatever' and reached back to scratch his head. "I hate to cut this short, but I have to get back to work," Lucy continued, folding it and putting it in her pocket.

Natsu glanced at the books. There was a lot there. "How much longer are you working?" he asked curiously.

"I'm free to go once all of these are shelved."

He nodded, waving his goodbye as she took off, pushing the cart in front of her. His stomach growled as he watched, and he was about to turn away to go get lunch when a sudden idea struck him. "Lucy, hey!" he called, going after her. She stopped, a book in her hand and halfway to the shelf. "I'll go wait over there," he said, pointing to a bench. "After you're done, let's get something to eat."

Lucy's cheeks turned a dark pink at his words, and he tilted his head into his scarf. "Okay," she said after a minute, smiling.

The way she smiled at him made his own smile widen. He had never been one to care much for romance or the like, but he found that he liked the way she smiled. Just like he said, he turned and went to the bench, plopping down and pulling out his phone. It still showed the notifications from the previous night, and he didn't care enough to make them go away. Whatever. He was only waiting for a few minutes when someone came to sit next to him, talking to someone on the phone. He was loud, and try as hard as he could to tune him out, there was no missing his conversation.

"I'm at the library now," he was saying. "I'm going to try and catch her before she leaves." He paused. "Lucy something, I don't know. Cute little blonde thing. Nice ass, even better tits." Natsu perked up at the name, feeling his blood start to boil. "Oh yeah. Can't let a girl like that pass up, you know?" The man laughed, and Natsu ground his teeth together. "Girls like that are so easy to reel in, and – oh, there she is! I'll let you know how it goes!"

The man jumped up before Natsu could tell him to shove off. His eyes followed him, confirming his suspicions when he stopped Lucy. "Bora, what are you doing here?"

He gave what Natsu suspected to be one of those sickly sweet smiles that people were so fond of giving out when they had less than noble intentions. "You haven't answered any of my calls," he said smoothly. Over his shoulder, Natsu saw Lucy's eyes narrow a little bit.

"Yes, well, that's what happens when you stand someone up," she said, voice dripping with more acid than Natsu thought she might be capable of. Her eyes met his for a second before returning back to Bora. "Now, if you'll excuse me," she started to say, stepping to the side, Bora sidestepped faster, however, blocking her leave.

"Lucy, baby, don't be like that," he said. Natsu hated the way he purred her name, as if she was some kind of _object_. "Let me make it up to you. I'll cook you a romantic dinner at my place. We can sit and watch the stars come out, maybe start a fire. It'll be very nice, I promise." Natsu didn't need to see over Bora's shoulder to know that Lucy was rolling her eyes. Everything about the way she was standing – leaning back, arm crossed against her chest – suggested she was not interested.

"Sorry, but I have plans tonight," she said. "I-I have a date."

Natsu blinked. She did? Bora seemed surprised as well, not stopping her from walking around him this time. "Wait, Lucy," he said, reaching out and grabbing her elbow. Natsu rose as he yanked her closer to him, ready to pummel him right to the ground. He didn't have the chance.

Before he had taken even one step closer, Lucy swung around and slapped him with her free hand. The sound of flesh hitting flesh was like a staccato note in the air, leaving both men completely shocked. "Let go," Lucy said, pulling her arm free. "Didn't you ever learn not to touch someone without permission?" Bora only stared at her, hand covering his cheek. "Now leave me alone." Without another word, Lucy marched right up to Natsu and asked if he was ready.

"Yeah," he stammered, blinking down at the girl. She gave a brisk 'good' before turning on her heel and out of the library. Natsu followed her after a second of hesitation, not bothering to give Bora another look. Lucy led them back up to the student union, nose part in the air and arms still crossed tightly against her cheek. "Uh, Lucy?"

"I _hate_ guys like him!" she finally snapped, throwing her hands up. "He thinks he can just offer a nice dinner and I'll go swooning backwards for him. Disgusting!"

Although he knew she was upset, Natsu couldn't help but grin. So, little Lucy who never went to Fairy Tail because she didn't think she could fight had some teeth after all. She glanced up at him for a second, and it was as if the air had been burst out of her. "Sorry," she muttered, rubbing her elbow.

"Don't apologize," Natsu said immediately. "Igneel told me that you shouldn't apologize for something you didn't do wrong." Lucy smiled up at him for a second before her eyes went back to the ground. This time, Natsu's gaze followed hers. He cleared his throat, feeling awkward. "So, uh," he said. "You have a date tonight?"

His words seemed to give Lucy back her fire. "No!" she said quickly, looking up at him with wide eyes. "I was just saying that to get him to back off!"

"Oh. Alright," Natsu said, trying to sound nonchalant. "I was a little worried maybe you didn't want to come see me fight after all." Lucy shook her head, causing him to grin. "Good! Because I'm gonna kick some ass!"

She laughed as they entered the building, and Natsu felt any more worries he had float behind him. He had never been one for dating, but maybe dating Lucy wouldn't be so bad.

~x~

Author's Note: Tada! I decided to turn this into a chapter story after all. ^^ it won't be long, just a few chapters, but here's one from Natsu's perspective! The others will most likely be from Lucy's standpoint, but I'm not 100% certain.

But, yeah! I hope you guys all liked it! :D


End file.
